First off, that was a very fortunate win to say the least. From the missed extra point to recovering two of our own fumbles that would have been catastrophic had Appy got them, to their mismanagement of the clock at the end of regulation. It finally felt good to win a game they so easily could have lost. Perhaps our luck has changed after going through the hell of the last eight or so years.
With that said. I'm very concerned. I think CTownVol had it right with calling out Debord. He seems to have very little feel for the game IMO. Kamara was clearly more effective and should have had more touches. Bottom line this offense is going to struggle if Dobbs isn't a threat to pull it down and take off. Because of his lack of being a threat to consistently throw it downfield, the offense is extremely easy to defend if he isn't running the ball. The offense just seems to have no consistent identity. You see this play out on first down because there were so many second and longs. I want more Preston WIlliams, I want more Kamara. They need to run more misdirection. Something.
There was ample opportunity to assert their will over App. State and take ownership of the game. Getting the ball at midfield with three minutes in the first half, opening the second half with great field position and then scoring zero points is extremely disconcerting.
Not really concerned with the defense. They were stout when they were needed most. They will benefit greatly if the offense puts it together.
Why do refs overturn calls that aren't totally conclusive. Smith probably trapped that ball but there is no way you can 100 percent say incomplete from those replays. If it was incomplete it's highly unlikely Smith would have handled it so smoothly throughout the 'process' of making a catch.
App State is a good scrappy opponent, but honestly Tennessee should beat them by 14 on a bad day. They need to play like a completely different team than the one that played today if they plan on beating the Hokies.
With that said. I'm very concerned. I think CTownVol had it right with calling out Debord. He seems to have very little feel for the game IMO. Kamara was clearly more effective and should have had more touches. Bottom line this offense is going to struggle if Dobbs isn't a threat to pull it down and take off. Because of his lack of being a threat to consistently throw it downfield, the offense is extremely easy to defend if he isn't running the ball. The offense just seems to have no consistent identity. You see this play out on first down because there were so many second and longs. I want more Preston WIlliams, I want more Kamara. They need to run more misdirection. Something.
There was ample opportunity to assert their will over App. State and take ownership of the game. Getting the ball at midfield with three minutes in the first half, opening the second half with great field position and then scoring zero points is extremely disconcerting.
Not really concerned with the defense. They were stout when they were needed most. They will benefit greatly if the offense puts it together.
Why do refs overturn calls that aren't totally conclusive. Smith probably trapped that ball but there is no way you can 100 percent say incomplete from those replays. If it was incomplete it's highly unlikely Smith would have handled it so smoothly throughout the 'process' of making a catch.
App State is a good scrappy opponent, but honestly Tennessee should beat them by 14 on a bad day. They need to play like a completely different team than the one that played today if they plan on beating the Hokies.
